Otto Halpern v. United States

WATERMAN, Circuit Judge.

The Invention Secrecy Act of 1951, 35 U.S.C. §§ 181-188, provides for nondisclosure of information contained in patent applications when certain officials of the United States believe that disclosure would be inimical to the national interest. The result is that the inventor does not receive a patent until the necessity for secrecy ceases and hence he is unable to exploit the fruits of his labor. In order to protect the inventor and to encourage the discovery of inventions having military application, the inventor whose patent has been withheld under a secrecy order…